Timing, and Space Given
by CornuCopiaSGR
Summary: The night was cool, until Palkia visited and time stopped. [ CosmosShipping ] [ Palkia / Dialga ]


A/N : I warn you, Dialga is overpowered (lol). Also, I presume this is pretty rushed, so please just enjoy

* * *

The night fell on Sinnoh. Lights made shallow sparkles amidst the growing darkness, creating peaceful scenery with the addition of dazzling stars atop the purple-hue sky.

That was what Dialga thought about.

She was currently staying on the top of hill, one that she referred to herself as a place to _reside_. Almost every night, the Temporal Legendary went there to clear her mind, chill down whenever she was troubled, or simply admire the view.

Only few had known this place, and that was another good news for her. She liked to have private time, after all. Well, there was someone who actually knew…

At the moment now, while Dialga was in her comfort zone enjoying her time, a dark-purple rift suddenly appeared behind her. A certain Legendary landed in the grassy ground, and the rift disappeared. He was no other than Palkia. Attempting to visit in silence, he seemed to success for a moment.

And so, he broke it up.

"Hi-

"WHOA," Dialga rose to her four and spun furiously, her tails flicking in anger. But after realizing it was Palkia, she sighed loudly.

"Damn Arceus, my heart almost skipped a beat," she murmured, still quite in panic.

"I'm not Arceus," Palkia replied nevertheless. "Beside, you're still alive, so don't exaggerate it," he added while offering a chuckle.

"Someone needs to fathom the usage of _almost_ ," Dialga grunted, and then she shook her head "But seriously. I think you should really consider doing that less often,"

"I didn't mean to scare you out…," the being of Space shifted uncomfortably, unable to raise his head. One thing Dialga did notice from her counterpart was that he took guilt personally too far, almost to the point where he would start to hate himself.

"Chill down. It's okay," she comforted him. And just after that, the bubbly Palkia with his goofy smile returned. She couldn't help but smile.

"Anyway, why are you here?" she brought up conversation between them.

"Actually, I want to ask you something," Palkia said. Although there was no stutter, a hint of doubt was clear in his voice. Not wanting to push him and further panic him out, Dialga gave him space to continue. She spent her time to take a good look at him, who was fidgeting slightly.

A minute passed and the silence was not broken yet.

"Well I'm waiting," Dialga spoke out. The statement made Palkia visibly flinched.

"Uhh, this may sound rude…" he began, still with doubt and unconvincing air. Dialga could see it, but she let it be. After all, she had to admit she enjoyed seeing him in doubt or in confusion.

It was cute.

Wait, what did she just think?

"Would you…" the unfinished statement recalled Dialga back. She waited patiently while at the same time bracing herself; Palkia was enigmatic at some point. Last time he went to her and wanted to ask something, he surprised her by actually asking what should he eat that day.

Oh Palkia, what an innocent soul.

Still, she wasn't sure that would be the same case since Palkia seldom being nervous, when normally he could generally say anything he wanted.

But then she noticed, he was no longer fidgeting.

"Would you like to go out with me?"

…

…

…

Silence.

…

…

More silence.

There was only sound of rustling grasses and wind sweeping.

"Pardon?" was the only thing she could say at the moment.

"I mean it," he replied. "And I believe you've heard it aloud," the violet dragon added calmly, his arms crossed.

Dialga was unsure, but one thing she could be certain was that adrenaline rushed in her system. She never thought that Palkia would ask her out at the moment, and the discovery of his inquiry further surprised her.

Now it was Palkia turn to wait for her reply, and Dialga's turn to fidgeting and panicking. In fact, she was known as the most composed Legendary out of all, but there was always a point where anyone could be taken off guard.

Was she overreacting?

She could not answer, for that her mind still searching the rightful answer for Palkia. In addition of her panic state, Palkia kept looking at her, perhaps looking forward for her reply. She swore he couldn't make it out that him staring at her like that amplified her disoriented mind.

God, when was the last time she was disorganized this much?

Palkia was still waiting, and she felt like his eyes pierced through her, wanting to know the answer _before she even knew herself._

And so, she couldn't think clear.

 _"Time Stop!"_

Everything suddenly stopped. Dialga breathed in and out, she had no idea that answering a quite _stupid_ request would send her to her current state now. She looked at Palkia, who froze at place but his eyes were still glowing alive.

There were amusing things to look at during stopped time, like how leaves stopped dancing with the wind, or some of the withered ones halted midair. But the whole commotion left Dialga fully unaware nor giving a heed of her surrounding. Right now, she could only come up with one thing.

 _"Reversal Flow!"_

Time started to flow; but instead going forth, it went back. Everything, except Dialga, was moving to their prior position; withered leaves come back to their branches, wind breezed on opposite direction, and Palkia going back to his portal and disappeared. The rushing sound of reversed time was almost too much to bear.

After a moment, things went back to normal. The night seemed to turn back into a serene and peaceful one, until Dialga collapsed and slumped to the ground. Manipulating time cost a lot, and for another note, the Temporal Legendary never did it twice in a row. She still couldn't feel relieved nevertheless, because she was just _delaying_ Palkia's request. Sooner or later, the Spatial Legendary would come and everything went just as the way it had gone before. She could only alternate time, not _destiny._

All that she could manage was to think clearly what to reply. She had to utilize her time carefully though, because-

"Hi,"

"Gah!" once again she jumped to her four, almost hissing in fury.

 _'Damn, should've anticipated that one,'_ she thought to herself.

"Oops," the recently coming Legendary chuckled. "Hope you don't faint," he added playfully, grinning upon her.

"Clearly I am doing well," she replied back, forcing a smile on her countenance. _'Doing really well after tiring myself out physically and mentally,'_ was left unsaid. Instead, she asked him.

"Mind if I ask what brings you here?"

"Uhm..."

 _'Here it comes'_ Dialga warned herself.

"Actually, I want to ask you something,"

 _'Try to act natural, try to act natural,'_

Shutting eyes tight while at the same time shaking head constantly _was not natural_ ; Palkia was befuddled with her sudden reaction.

"Hello? Earth to Dialga?" he waved his paw in front of her. The swinging hand eventually brought her back to reality.

 _'Arceus, why I'm so overreacting'_

"Ah, sorry. Just something slipped in my mind," she spoke unconvincingly. Too bad Palkia noticed it.

"Are you okay?" he asked. "You don't look good," and after a moment, he waved his paws furiously. "-ah, that's not what I mean!"

She raised her eyebrow at him. For a moment, the usual clumsy Palkia soothed her and she could feel warmth inside her. Only if she was not this bewildered, had she laughed _with_ him.

"Nevermind," she smiled at him, non-verbally assuring him she was fine. "So, what's the deal?"

"Uhh, this may sound rude…" Palkia trailed off.

She tried to calm herself; her mind was already racing, seeking for proper answer. She knew what to come, but she didn't know what to react.

"Would you…"

She still hadn't had the answer.

Yet.

"Would you like to go out with me?"

And she was just as unprepared as before.

"Uhh…" frustrated for not being able to understand her own self, Dialga almost lost control of her emotions. Anger, depression, confusion, self-contempt, all overflowing in mixture of emotions, coming wave after wave, wearing her off mentally.

"Dialga?" when Dialga raised her face, Palkia could see her narrowed eyes, a glimpse of weariness and mental exhaustion in her ruby irises.

Perhaps it wasn't a good idea to ask her, but there was one unclear matter for him.

"… are you … somehow…" he began, clicking his finger on both paws. "You know, using up your power to avoid my request?"

Dialga blinked her eyes, temporarily stunned. Well of course as a Legendary, Time Stop would indeed take action but with their consciousness still planted on them. She cursed herself for not taking that into account.

"I actually can feel my presence being sucked back…" Palkia explained, his eyes still darted around the Temporal Legendary. "I'm not wondering _how_ … but I don't understand _why_ ," he finished.

"I- uhhh," she started. " That's not what I'm intending to do, Palkia. I just-"

"Thanks God," he cut her off, as a relieved sigh escaped his lips. "I was starting to think you despise me…"

"No Palkia," Dialga quickly interjected. "That's not it," she pointed out while sighing, pulling herself to explain for anything she could open up to him.

"I… I'm unaware of myself. I have to admit it," she began, her feet kicking dust, her eyes narrowed. "I just can't pull any courage just as much as you did," she continued, but now looking directly at him. Recalling of how cool he was before, she chuckled. "I mean, honestly, you look so composed while I'm taken off guard,"

Hearing the compliment gave Palkia another reason to laugh.

"Truth to be told, I'm well prepared," the Spatial Legendary replied, almost boasting himself. "You have no idea how much time I spent just to practice myself saying that without making myself ashamed. Although, I did still stuttering at first,"

Dialga gave a look of confusion. Something nagged in her mind, Palkia assumed.

"In case you're wondering, it's from about 400 days ago," he added, paw scratching cheek which began to fluster crimson.

"I thought it would be nice to date you on White Day, so I practically spent my time so that I'll just look charming," he presumed Dialga was staring blankly with that 'really?' look at her, but currently she was not. She simply listened. ".. in which I think I fail, but nevermind," he laughed to himself, but then he continued. "Last year, I debated with myself whether I'm already good to go or not, and the better part of me convince me that I was going to fail," he put his paw to cover half of his face, unconsciously an act of covering himself from shameful decision. ".. and maybe because I couldn't overcome my own fear, I decided not to go. Pretty much I'm hating my own self since then, while making sure that next year I'll go,"

After realizing that at the moment he was blatantly blabbering, he rubbed the back of his head while grinning sheepishly. "I'm sorry. I never put melancholy on my calculation,"

"I…" Dialga started to recompose herself. Palkia's story did hit her; she would not think he had gone through such difficulty just to ask her out - and after what she had done, it seemed to be unfair.

"I should be the one to apologize. Maybe I'm just too selfish to think that I don't want to…" she trailed off as she closed her eyes, unable to continue. Avoiding his request? Of course no. Perhaps she only wanted to save her ass not to look bashful and uncertain, in front of Palkia – which she began to reconsider ; at the very least, it was just her counterpart, the one and only Palkia.

"I understand, Dialga. Although I'm surprised that your usual calm and cool antics suddenly wear off," her counterpart replied heartily, with a smile crossed his face.

"Thanks to mention that," she couldn't help but chuckle.

For now, they were just smiling to each other. It helped to release the tension, Palkia thought. At least Dialga seemed to be back to her prior self.

"So, how is it?" he broke the bubble of silence. Dialga raised her eyebrow at her, in which Palkia further pushed. "You haven't answered yet,"

"Oh…" she had almost forgotten. The night was full of emotions and unique discovery that she really felt it was too much for her. And then there was still Palkia's request.

Seeing that uncertainty was still lingering around Dialga, Palkia scratched his temple. But moment later, he grinned widely.

"Rather than reversing time, how about I let you think about it and I'll come back later," the purple dragon suggested. "Sounds good?"

"You're starting to make this like a romantic fiction movie…" she replied in deadpan, but was amused with the idea. After all, Palkia really wanted to give her space to think of it. Certainly, she believed he must've been looking forward for this.

"I know," he laughed, a laugh that warmed her heart. "I wish we could make one though,"

Dialga momentarily flushed at the answer, so she threw her face away. That, did not escape Palkia's attention as his laugh subsided into an honest smile.

"Jokes aside, is twenty seconds enough?" he asked.

"I don't know-

"Then that's it. I'll be back before you even notice it!" before Dialga could say no, he already vanished, leaving her alone.

There was only twenty seconds, and she surely could spend it wiser now for she had calmed herself. But just as how fast Palkia disappeared, he was already popping back next to her.

"I thought you give me twenty," Dialga protested rather lamely.

"I do," Palkia answered cooly, though for a moment Dialga could feel he was serious now.

Damn, this indeed would be a well-made romance fiction.

"Hi,"

"Hi,"

"Let's just cut the rest," the purple Legendary grinned. "Would you like to go out with me?"

There was a moment of silence between them. But this time, it was a comforting one ; Palkia didn't push her. Instead, he looked up to the sky, counting the stars with every seconds passed.

After a while, Dialga sighed in defeat.

"Fine…" she finally replied.

"Fine? You take your time for an unconvincing answer?" Palkia playfully mocked her, although deep inside he was joyful that Dialga actually agreed.

"W-well that's what I can come up with," she defended herself.

"Fine sounds like you're forced to do so…" he murmured to himself. "But it's okay. So we're good now?" he offered her his best earnest smile, and it worked surely, for he saw Dialga smiled back.

He couldn't think anything better than watching Dialga with her precious smile.

"You know, I wish I had half of your spirit," she suddenly said.

"Huh?" Palkia tilted his head.

"I mean, that's what I like from you," Dialga's eyes lingered on him, a look that he couldn't make up what she was thinking. "You're passionate, cheerful and gleeful. Some may think you're childish, which I, at some point have to agree. But, it's what makes Palkia is Palkia. And definitely not something to make Dialga is Dialga,"

Palkia scratched his flushed cheeks, grinning at her. "Did you just say… you like me?"

All the talk and Palkia only got the first line? If Dialga had paw, she would already slap her forehead.

"Yes Palkia. I like you," she stated, clear and loud. There was a look of content and delight on her face, and Palkia would just say he had it the same way "And that, would be stupid of me when I agree to go out with you if I…" stopping for a while, she thought of proper euphemism to replace _hate._ "…dislike you,"

Call it overreacting, but Palkia almost weeped. He walked to her and gave her a hug.

"Thank you," he whispered. When he looked at her, she was just as gleeful as he was.

"So, where are we going?" she asked after he stepped back.

"Actually, it's already late night," Palkia pointed out.

"Really?" Dialga replied with disappointment crept in her voice.

"For a God of Time, you sure a slob," Palkia laughed. "But I have one in mind. Can I suggest it?"

"I don't think time flies that fast though," Dialga shook her head, because she had no shoulder to shrug. "Go on,"

"How about we just stay here?" the Spatial Legendary said.

"For real?" she almost deadpanned.

"There's only two of us," he replied nonchalantly. "And that's what matters,"

"Since when you become this romantic?" Dialga rolled her eyes sarcastically, though she admitted she liked his saying.

"I always do," Palkia grinned smugly. "You just never find out,"

A blanket of silence wrapped around them, creating comfortable atmosphere. Dialga laid on the ground, while Palkia sat beside her, arm wrapped on her neck. The wind was cold, but with Palkia beside her, she was unfazed with the cool air.

"Palkia?" she called.

"Hmm?" a murmur was only his reply.

"Just want to ask something bugging my mind," Dialga said. There was no reply, so she thought he was giving her space to continue.

"Why did you wait that long? You could ask me out anytime," while asking the said question, she gazed at him. In the dark, his ruby eyes sparkled and glow.

"I want to make it special," Palkia answered, his other free arm playing with the grasses. "And I want it to be my forever reminder that being indecisive can lead to endless regret," though faintly, Dialga could feel him grimacing. "I value time because I have no control over it,"

"I'm sorry. I should've valued time as well," she said while leaning closer to him.

"We're doing that now," he grinned at her.

"Oh please. Stop being an ass," she grinned back. They spend another minutes in silence, enjoying each other company.

"Hey, I have an idea," Palkia unexpectedly spoke up. "Let's make poem,"

"We both know neither of us are good in words," Dialga smacked him playfully with one of her foreleg, with a faint grunt and laugh as the response.

"I know. And they said double negative makes positive," Palkia quoted, and Dialga wasn't sure whether to laugh or to smack him again.

"Geez. What an astonishing night," she laughed.

Palkia silently nudged at her, signaling her to go first. Together, they used their power to somehow created line and line of glowing light of words in the air; Dialga's was cyan, while Palkia's was violet.

 _As the clock ticking,_

 _so do our heart beating._

Their first line somehow synchronize, and Dialga thought they weren't that bad. She then continued.

 _Forever does not exist,_

Palkia smirked as he followed.

 _but love of ours will always insist._

Another smack on the head was the result. When Palkia looked at her, she was busy looking away.

"Your turn," he reminded her as he giggled. Dialga chuckled, recomposed herself and then she manage to finish her line.

 _Time and space are matters to face,_

 _but inseparable we are, whatever the case._

"… that's unexpectedly going well, don't you think so?" Palkia smiled widely, admiring their work. Had he brought a camera, he would already take a picture.

"I agree," Dialga replied in honesty. "It's lovely," she mused, and Palkia couldn't agree more.

 _"So are we"_ was left unsaid, but both of them knew it the best.


End file.
